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Most anime is some form of coming of age story. Heck, a large chunk of literature is about growing up. From Journey to The West (Dragon Ball those in the know) to Guilty Crown to Catcher in the Rye, it’s all about how a boy (or a girl. Anime likes to tell this story about girls a bit, too) learns to accept himself and then change the world.
Tsuritama, surprisingly, manages to... See full review

Story
I really, really meant to review Bakemonogatari way back when it aired, since the show seemed to captivate the anisphere. Here’s the thing: I was never quite sure what I watched. To me, the show was overly complex when it didn’t need to be, a continual tease, and only “intelligent” in the way two teenagers up late talking about life can be. But I held my tongue. I could never form a set of arguments that satisfied me. ... See full review

StoryWorking!! nearly wore out its welcome when it first aired. As the season wound down, the emphasis on Takanashi and Inami’s relationship began to consume all the screen time, reducing the fun and episodic slice of life series to a monotonously dysfunctional romance. So. Should we watch a second season when the first seemed to run out of steam? OF COURSE.
With the two “leads” at a sort of developmental detente, Working'!! explodes in a bunch of... See full review

Story
Some of you fondly remember being a twelve year old anime fan. Back then the foundations of incredible storytelling--compelling plot twists, subtle characterization, and good acting--seemed of little import. What mattered most was whether the battles were awesome and the characters looked cool. For those of you deeply in touch with this younger self and a few hours to kill, run along and watch Sacred Seven. The rest of you, stick around a bit before you decide how to spend your time.
Sacred Seven works by... See full review

Story4-koma adapatations are probably among my favorite anime. Their predictable pacing relaxes me, and the humor can range from raunchy (Doujin Work) to deliberately strange (Azumanga Daioh). Of these, ones set in high school seem to pop up again and again, threatening to make the genre grow stale. And then, there's Hidamari Sketch. SHAFT's work stands from the crowd out by marrying simple... See full review

Story
Thanks to Lucky Star and Azumanga Daioh, it seems at times that “slice-of-life” is synononamous with high school. However, titles that buck that trend like Doujin Work and Muteki Kanban Musume demonstrate that the world at large holds just as many laughs and it’s into this tradition that Working!! falls.
This series follows ... See full review

StoryWith its self-contained plot, small cast, and punchy finale, the first half of Denpa Onna to Seshun Otoko plays out like a clever OVA. After moving to the big city to live with his aunt, Makoto Niwa juggles a flirtation-filled school life with the thorny problem of his deluded cousin, Erio (she thinks she’s an alien and spends all her time wearing a futon). As he slowly... See full review

StoryIn the spring of 2010, Kimi ni Todoke charmed many viewers with its floral visuals and stunning performance by Mamiko Noto as Sawako Kuronuma. Like a rarefied picture of high school romance, the series drew out the bittersweet anticipation that comes from not knowing how your crush feels about you, and turned it into a kind of delightful torture--for viewers who were into that kind of thing... See full review

StoryThere is a place in everyone’s diet for comfort food. Whether it be a functional fantasy OVA like Ruin Explorers or a serviceable moe comedy like Kanamemo, not everything produced can or intends to touch greatness. Kage Kara Mamoru slides easily into this general bin, forfeiting any minor ambitions in order to become a security blanket of competence. And for the most part, it... See full review

StoryIt’s no secret that I like silly slice of life anime. Generally the less plot on display, the happier I am. So, when I fired up Shinryaku! Ika-musume, I knew there was a significant chance that I’d at least like the show. But this little anime’s potent mix of outlandish situations and well-placed narrative fake-outs surprised even me.
Shinryaku! Ika-musume starts with an absurd premise: a squid-girl rises from the ocean intent on enslaving humanity armed only with an imperious attitude and ten... See full review

StoryRemember when you were little and your parents left you alone in the house? You got out that giant mixing bowl and threw ALL of your favorite foods into it: pizza bites, pretzels, ice cream, chocolate and strawberry syrup, whipped cream, and cookie dough. Face it, it tasted awful. That, ladies and gentlemen is kind of what Tantei Opera Milky Holmes is--an ill-considered, pandering clusterfuck of moe.
Tantei Opera Milky Holmes is an excuse to name some high school students after famous fictional detectives... See full review

StoryBack in the late '90's, I approached anime purchases as an exciting gamble. Armed only with a fistfull of cash earned from long hours as a soccer referee and unbounded enthusiasm, I would go to the video store and buy something, based only on attractiveness of its box art. In this magical time filled with VHS tapes and blissful ignorance, Iria: Zeiram the Animation by chance, drawn in by is short length and comely heroine. While not a masterpiece of storytelling, animation, or sound, it does everything a good OVA... See full review

StoryTHIS IS A REVIEW OF THE SECOND SEASON. AS SUCH, IT WILL CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS FOR SEASON ONE. You have been warned.
Awhile ago, I reviewedSekirei's first season as mediocre but entertaining. Its cocktail of boobs, action, foreshadowing, and boobs failed to live up to its potential, but I could see a strong possibility for improvement on the horizon. Luckily, the 2010 sequel, ...See full review

StoryI first learned about Detroit Metal City via an ANN review of the manga. The purile, no-holds-barred, and vulgar work proved to be a comedic gem, and so when KiraRin goaded me into reviewing the Studio 4C OVA spinoff, I needed little convincing. Though the animation offers little that fans familiar with the manga won't recognize, the direction and soundtrack enhance the material admirably. True to its heavy metal spirit, the concert (OVA) does not deviate in content from the album (the manga) and the... See full review

StoryNearly everyone who watched anime in the era when you had to buy it from your local video store has dropped shows for financial reasons. Or because it wasn't available. Or because you forgot to continue buying it. Either way, the age of the internet (and a 9-5 job) allows you and I to return to those shows that you never got around to seeing through. Of the anime on my list that fits this bill, Shamanic Princessstood out, since I remember having no idea what it was really about beyond cool magical battles in the dark. So, when I returned to... See full review

StoryMy experience with Studio 4C had been--at the time--fleeting, but I can clearly remember seeing a preview for Tweeny Witches at Sakura-con in 2009. Despite the off-putting English language title, I did feel my heart beat faster and my imagination pique as the sequence rolled. The rich setting and fantastic characters implied a vast, sweeping narrative set in an engaging locale, which suited my escapist anime predilections perfectly; so when fellow reviewer therik asked me to give it as a spin... See full review

StoryIt's easy to dismiss Go Nagai out-of-hand. His work is puerile, his characterization non-existent, and his art sloppy, but anyone can achieve these lows of quality. Nagai, on the other hand, frustrates, enrages, and offends because when a viewer takes time to consider his work he can see where his stories might have legs--had not their author been too obsessed with breasts, stupid expressions, and wanton violence. Encouraged to give him a second shot by an apologetic review of the Devilman manga, I fired up ... See full review

StoryI have a deep affection for stupid, ecchi shows. Ninja Nonsense and Penguin Musume Heart rank among my favorite diversions and I'll watch a good, nudity-filled Xebec series any day of the week. Anime with no pretensions that provides amusing, modesty-driven humor forms an enjoyable staple in any male anime fan's diet. Riding high on the moderate success of Ladies Versus Butlers, I checked out ... See full review

StoryCassie and I have similar taste in anime, which I find remarkable due to the fact that her list FAR outclasses mine and her favorite genre is shounen while mine is moeslice-of-life. But, when therik's incessant pestering had us buddy-grouping Manabi Straight, our near-uniform reaction to the title could only mean one thing: Joint review. What follows is part conversation, part essay, and all good.
Cassie: It... See full review

StoryDespite my Y chromosome, I have a thing for shoujo. Raised on Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman and The Cutting Edge, I love watching chemistry develop between two paramours from either furtive affection or outright antagonism into burning romance. Such a predilection stands behind my decision to watch Spring 2010's Kimi ni Todoke, a delicate flower of a high school love-story told through Production I.G.'s crisp visuals and astute sound direction. And, while the solid technical aspects... See full review

StoryIt's nearly impossible to be an anime fan and avoid lolicon, as the medium as a whole is obsessed with youth sexuality. Though I've seen Kyou no Go no Ni and Kanamemo, I felt it was high time to try out the lurid and colorful world of more directly pandering shows, and so fired up Chokotto Sister. While I did not find a dark and twisted new fetish, I was beguiled by the adorable girl, her tantalizing, blank notebook, and her gaggle of entertaining... See full review

Story
Skin and parody go hand-in-hand. As the US porn industry knows, the fastest way to make a good send-up of a famous movie or popular genre is to strip everyone naked, add some corny dialogue and milk the associations (among other things). Of late, we've seen Seitokai no Ichizon parody every popular anime of the last decade and Ladies Versus Butlers making fun of itself, so how could a satire of a classic show like Ultraman fail? Well, Ultimate Girls... See full review

StoryLet's talk for a moment about pacing. Pacing is the rate at which a story progresses; the speed at which the plot develops can make or break any narrative effort, but appears to me to be an acute issue in anime. The deft, non-linear approach of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni keeps its viewers on the edge of their seats. Conversely, the plodding half-formed yarn of Aoi Hana withers when almost nothing happens (even by the statue-speed standards of yuri romance, that anime fails). Of all anime, ... See full review

StoryI had thought that Kanokon ~Manatsu no Daishunikusai~ would be the most lackluster
anime that I'd see during 2009. Given that Kouta and Chizuru graced our
screens in November, that assertion seemed likely to hold. Oh, how
wrong I was. After the delicious melancholy of Blue Drop, I fired up Itsudatte My Santa! looking for something short and funny with a slight zest of holiday
cheer. Unfortunately, however, it proved too long on stupid... See full review

StoryEvery so often, you stumble upon an anime that tries very hard to ruin itself: School Days, for example, almost runs for too many episodes; Code Geass takes a turn for the overly-complicated in the end of its first season; and Shakugan no Shana allows Kazumi to open her mouth. In all these cases, the foundations of the show prevent its failings from overwhelming the experience. 2009's Pandora Hearts... See full review

Disclaimer: This is not a site review. If you're reading one of these,
it's unlikely I'll ever write a site review for this anime. Probably
because I don't want to pick it apart. ^_^I'll be honest. I saw Mnemosyne, because VivisQueen felt obligated to mention the large amounts of sex in her review. That said, I enjoyed the whole experience heartily. After the lackluster first episode, the OVA gains momentum until the final installment ends in a comparatively unimpressive manner. Maybe if there had been seven entries instead of six, the conclusion wouldn't have felt as rushed and confusing.Story... See full review

Disclaimer: This is not a site review. If you're reading one of these, it's unlikely I'll ever write a site review for this anime. Probably because I don't want to pick it apart. ^_^Saki's problem lies with its blatant imperfections. Up to around episode 15, this show is amazing. The spectacular animation and amusing characters mitigate the sometimes sluggish pacing, the mahjong sits center-stage at nearly all times in the show, and Rie Kugimiya is voice acting. What more can you ask for?However, when the action wanders away from the board into a land where the animation budget clearly isn't as high... See full review

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